The founder of Living Faith Church Worldwide, Bishop David Oyedepo, has advised young Nigerians to stop relying on sports betting as a path to financial success, urging them to embrace hard work, patience and purposeful living instead.
Speaking during a church service on Sunday, Oyedepo described sports betting as a dangerous distraction capable of destroying the future of many young people. He stressed that genuine and lasting prosperity is achieved through diligence rather than gambling.
Addressing the congregation, the cleric warned that betting would not lead anyone to financial fortune.
“Young people, Naija Bet is not the way to financial fortune. Stop wasting your destiny and your time. I have never been deceived by it. Stop,” he said.
Oyedepo acknowledged that success may not come overnight but encouraged young people to remain focused, assuring them that steady progress built on the right principles would eventually yield lasting rewards.
“Things may be slow, but they are sure,” he added.
Reflecting on his personal faith journey, the bishop recounted how he honoured the woman who introduced him to Christianity by presenting her with a car decades later.
According to him, the woman led him to Christ when he was 15 years old, and when he turned 60, he arranged for a car to be delivered to her residence in the United States as a token of appreciation.
“She wept when she received it. You had better wake up,” he said.
Oyedepo’s remarks come amid growing concerns over the rising popularity of sports betting among Nigerian youths, with religious leaders and social commentators increasingly warning about its financial, emotional and social consequences.
